News Briefs (April 19, 2014)RSD kindergarten registration The Russellville School District will conduct kindergarten registration at 6 p.m. Monday and Tuesday. Registration for Dwight, Oakland Heights and Sequoyah elementary schools will be on Monday, and Center Valley, Crawford and London elementary schools will be on Tuesday. Children must be 5 years old on or before Aug. 1, 2014, to enroll in kindergarten for the 2014-15 school year. Children should be registered in t...

Commission grants museum $2,800The Russellville Advertising and Promotions (A&P) Commission approved a $2,800 grant for the Museum of Military History during its regular meeting Thursday. The funds will cover start-up costs, two months rent on the building at 127 East B St. in Russellville and billboard advertising for two months. Cindy Walker, the museum's treasurer, said she hopes to open the museum in May. "I can at least have it where people can see [the items] instead ...

ABI hosts drive for local bloodThe Arkansas Blood Institute (ABI) — which in January replaced the American Red Cross as Saint Mary's Regional Medical Center's blood drive partner — is preparing for a big turnout during its next blood drive with the hospital. The blood drive will be conducted from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday in Cafeteria 2 and 3 of the hospital. "We are the only provider of blood to Saint Mary's Regional Medical Center and River Valley Medical Center in D...

Bank, community honors Reaves at receptionFamily, friends, bank employees and community leaders gathered to honor Roy Reaves during his retirement party Wednesday afternoon at Centennial Bank. "He's been a good friend to Pope County for a lot of years," County Judge Jim Ed Gibson said. "I don't think he's going to totally retire. He's been involved in a lot of things, and I expect he's going to continue to doing that." Reaves, who today will retire after 27 years in banking and commun...

County does spring cleaningPope County will conduct its annual spring clean up from 7 a.m. to noon April 26 at the Pope County Road Department. The road department is located at No. 5 County Complex Road in Russellville. "It's a good time to clean up the county, clean up the roads and get rid of any debris around your house," County Judge Jim Ed Gibson said. Any volunteers who want to help pick up trash on the county road can get trash bags at the Pope County Judge's Of...

Phoenix overpass work to shut trafficNorth Phoenix Avenue will be closed from West Main Street to West Parkway Drive for one week for continued construction of the Union Pacific Railroad overpass. The closure will begin Monday and last through April 27. Residents are encouraged to plan alternate routes during this time. "Originally, we thought we were going to have to shut down traffic for several months," City Engineer Michael Oakes said. "So, just one week [of closure] is great...

Coalition prepares for park party The River Valley Prevention Coalition (RVPC) finalized plans for its booth at Saturday's pARTy in the Park during its regular meeting Tuesday. "It's a good event with a lot of stuff to do for kids," Angie White, RVPC co-chair, said. The RVPC booth will feature face painting, children's crafts and more. The annual pARTy in the Park is from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Hughes Community Center and Russellville City Park. The event — hosted b...

Atkins man wins $1 millionJames Osborn of Atkins won $1 million in the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL). Osborn bought the winning ticket — a $20 instant game, Platinum Payout — at PDQ North in Russellville. The store will receive a 1 percent selling bonus. Store manager Susan Lee said the $10,000 bonus will be spent on updates to the store. Lee said she and the store employees are excited to have sold a million-dollar winning ticket. "We're very excited," she said. ...

RPD Bike Blast a successThe Russellville Police Department (RPD) hosted the very first Bike Blast Saturday afternoon at the Train Depot in Russellville. The Bike Blast — a bike safety event — was free and open to public. RPD handed out the majority of 200 free Schwinn bike helmets to the children and youth bike riders as well as maps that highlight bike lanes throughout the city, free reflectors and had a drawing for a $300 gift card to Carr's Chain Reaction for one ...

14 receive Giving Tree grantsThe Pope County Community Foundation awarded 14 Pope County nonprofits Giving Tree grants totaling $24,000 during a donor reception Thursday at the River Valley Arts Center. Madelyn Ginsberg, Pope County Community Foundation executive director, said board members, grant recipients and foundation donors attended the event. "It worked out well because the donors got to see where their money is going," she said. "It's a win-win that showcases non...

Humphrey discusses crematoriumJim Bob Humphrey, president of Humphrey Funeral Service, hosted a public meeting Thursday evening at Center Valley Elementary to address people's concerns about a proposed memorial garden and crematorium near the school. Nearly 65 people attended the meeting, which lasted about almost two hours. Humphrey began the meeting by giving the audience a thorough explanation of his plan for Center Valley Memorial Gardens. His presentation included pho...

Dardanelle switches retirement firmsDARDANELLE — The Dardanelle City Council unanimously approved changing city employees' retirement company from Life Associates, Inc. to Edward Jones Investments during its regular meeting Monday. City Attorney Ken Helton told the council the city wanted to leave Life Associates, Inc. for some time because of the company's legal issues. Life Associates, Inc. is an Illinois-based company that administers employee pension plans and group life ins...

Drowning victims identifiedTwo men drowned Thursday morning when the boat they were in capsized in Lake Dardanelle. Pope County Sheriff Aaron DuVall identified the victims Thursday afternoon as Xing Wu Dong and Tan Jiang. Dong, 40, was a Russellville resident and Jiang, 26, was believed to be from Searcy. At 3:18 a.m., the Pope County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) received a call of a possible drowning. Four men, all related, were in a boat on Lake Dardanelle off Pleasant Vie...

2 bodies recovered from overturned boat on Lake DardanelleAuthorities have just recovered two bodies from Lake Dardanelle, after an early-morning call of an overturned boat. At 3:18 a.m., the Pope County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) received a call of a possible drowning. Four men were in a boat on Lake Dardanelle off Pleasant View Road just before Twin Bridges when their boat overturned, Pope County Sheriff Aaron DuVall said. "Two of the men made it to shore," he said. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commissi...

RPD hosts Bike BlastThe Russellville Police Department (RPD) will host Bike Blast from 2-4 p.m. Saturday at the Train Depot in Russellville. The Bike Blast — a bike safety event — is free and open to public. RPD will hand out 200 free Schwinn bike helmets, maps that highlight bike lanes throughout the city, free reflectors and a $300 gift card to Carr's Chain Reaction for one child, aged 4-13, to purchase the bike of his or her choice. "The RPD is really excited ...

Bash at the Ballpark this FridayThe Russellville Area Chamber of Commerce will host Bash at the Ballpark 2014 at Arkansas Tech University on Friday, April 11. The event will include music, food and prizes in conjunction with the Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys’ baseball game that evening at Tech Field against Ouachita Baptist University. Event sponsors include First State Bank, Sherwood Urgent Care, Walmart, Shelter Insurance – Matt Cooper, Advanced Wealth Management – Jarrod Tola...

Finance committee tables aquatic center talksThe City of Russellville Finance Committee tabled finalizing a site for an indoor aquatic center during its regular meeting Tuesday. Alderman Mark Tripp said the city's priority is making the right decision, not the quickest decision. "It's way more important, more prudent, for us to get this right for the the long-term benefit of the community than to hurry up for short-term gain,” he said. Earlier Tuesday, the Russellville Recreation and Par...

Venezia’s sustains loss from fireVenezia's Italian Kitchen in Russellville sustained heavy damage following a Tuesday night fire. Around 10 p.m. Tuesday, four units of Russellville firefighters responded to a structure fire at the restaurant on East Main Street. Upon arrival, the units found heavy smoke coming from the roof of the single-story building. The restaurant was closed at the time, and the firefighters reported nobody was in the building. Firefighters entered the bu...

Dardanelle welcomes new aldermanDARDANELLE — The Dardanelle City Council welcomed new alderman Leon Lane during its regular meeting Monday. Lane replaced alderman Scott Moore from Ward 2 because Moore is moving outside the city limits. "Considering the amount of time left, under Arkansas code, we are to appoint a replacement to serve out the unexpired term," City Attorney Ken Helton said. Moore resigned in March, and the term expires Dec. 31. The council, following state sta...

Police to crack down on distracted drivingLocal law enforcement will join a six-day national initiative to crack down on violators who text while driving. The "U Drive. U Text. U Pay." campaign, which begins Thursday and ends Tuesday, is a two-fold initiative that combines additional patrols devoted to watching for distracted drivers with a national media outreach designed to inform the public about the stepped-up patrols and the driver’s responsibility to obey the law. The Russellvil...